The present invention relates to the field of calendaring software, more particularly to automating application state of a set (one or more) of computing devices responsive to scheduled events, where the adjusted application state is based at least in part upon historic data.
Digital calendars can help a user organize their schedule in many ways. For some business people, digital calendars have become an important part of their business routine. These users can use their calendars to set appointments and allocate time for different meetings and events. When a scheduled meeting or event is going to take place soon, the calendar can alert its owner in any number of ways. Some calendar systems can update a display device, use an audible alarm, and send the owner an email or simple messaging system (SMS) message. Some meetings or events are recurring and always happen at the same time and/or day. For each of these meetings, the user can have a set of required actions to perform to prepare for the meeting. For example, a user may have to initiate an internet-based conference with certain recipients, open certain documents for viewing, connect to an application server, or the like.
Every time a user has to switch to a different meeting or event, they must prepare for it. Part of this preparation can include loading suitable content and applications upon a computing device used during meeting interactions. For example, often one or more meeting participants use a tele-presence option, which requires communication software to be loaded and configured to enable the user to participate in the meeting. In another example, a meeting participant can take notes upon a notebook computer during a meeting using a note taking application of their choice. Further, users can load a slide show in a presentation application, can access meeting related documents, and perform other computing actions in preparation of a meeting. Users can also want to review previous meeting minutes, view past electronic presentations, and take other action in advance of a meeting in preparation for it.
Adjusting application state (changing a current desktop environment) to suit a meeting related state can be a time consuming endeavor. This is especially true for applications requiring configuration settings, which must be looked for that meeting. For example, conference calls generally require an special number to be dialed, a passcode to be input, and a participant enter some level of setup data (providing a name and other personal information) before a participant is granted access to a phone conference session. As use of meeting facilitating tools has increased (e.g., slideshow programs, Web-based collaboration programs, meeting applications, file exchange programs, etc.) pre-meeting setup time has also increased in a corresponding fashion.